Roasted Chicken with Chorizo and Spring Cabbage

I had never eaten Chorizo before I moved over here to England. It was not something I had ever heard of or even seen. I am a Chorizo convert and have come to love the delicious smokey flavour it brings to the dishes I use it in.



It also gives a lovely colour to the pan juices. It is now something that I would never be without in my larder, as it is so very versatile . . . in tortillas, casseroles, pasta sauces, scrambled eggs, stir fries . . . soups.



I found this recipe card recently in my local Waitrose grocery store. I was immediately taken with the photo on the front, and then, when I read the list of ingredients, I just knew I had to make it.



(Just look at that scrummy cabbage . . . mmmm . . . )

I love the Waitrose recipe cards. The recipes that they share on them are always deliciously wonderful.



The original recipe called for sherry or brandy, but since I am a Mormon, those are not things I regularly have in my kitchen in any quantity. I am happy to say that I substituted sherry vinigar with great success.

This was deliciously scrummy and a recipe that I will make again and again.



Company worthy even . . .

Trust me.



*Roasted Chicken with Chorizo and Spring Cabbage*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Moist and delicious chicken flavoured with the smokey flavours of chorizo, garlic and sweet spring cabbage.

4 free range chicken quarter portions
4 large cloves of garlic, unpeeled
250g Spanish Chorizo sausage, peeled and diced
1 TBS olive oil
2 TBS sherry vinegar
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pointed spring cabbage, trimmed, cored and shredded

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Place the chicken pieces into a shallow oven casserole dish. Add the garlic cloves and diced chorizo, scattering them amongst the chicken pieces. Drizzle with the olive oil, vinegar and season to taste with some salt and pepper. Roast in the heated oven for 15 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the oven. Remove to a plate. Stir the cabbage into the pan juices, then place the chicken back on top. Return to the oven and roast for an additional 35 to 40 minutes, or until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through and the juices run clear.

Remove from the oven and place the chicken on a heated serving plate. Keep warm. Slip the garlic cloves out of their skins and mash. Stir the mashed garlic into the cabbage mixture. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Serve the chicken with a portion of the cabbage/chorizo mixture and some fluffy mashed potatoes.



If you have never seen a Spring Cabbage, or Sweetheart Cabbage as it is sometimes known, it looks like this. Quite common in grocery stores over here in the UK from about now. It is long and pointed, and quite loose leaved, quite unlike the normal cabbage which is round and very tightly leaved. It has a lovely mild flavour. You can substitute regular cabbage if you are unable to get the spring cabbage, with no problems.